Blu-ray Review: 17 Again

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17 Again
Written by: Jason Filardi
Directed by: Burr Steers
Starring: Zac Efron, Thomas Lennon, Leslie Mann, Michelle Trachtenberg, Nicole Sullivan, Sterling Knight, and Matthew Perry

Blu-ray Specs:
1080P High Definition 16x9 2.4:1
Dolby TrueHD: English 5.1, Dolby Digital English 5.1
English SDH & Spanish Subtitles

Bonus Features: Zac Goes Back: Meet the Movie's Star Zac Efron, Going Back to 17: Castmates Remember Their Own Teen Years, Tell-All Trivia Track: On-Set Gossip, Cast 411 - All While You Watch the Movie, Deleted Scenes, and more
Exclusive to BDLive: Zac's Commentary, Tom Lennon and Melora Hardin - Unfiltered: Two Comedic Improv Nasters Come Together, Zac Attacks: Mike and Ned's Hilarious Battle with Medieval Science-Fiction Weapons

From the Box: If you had the chance, would you do your life over? Thirtysomething Mike O'Donnell would. Then one mysteriously magical moment, Mike gets his chance. He's suddenly back at Hayden High where he's the star of the basketball team, a total hottie and a classmate to his own teenage kids...which gives Nike a chance to go from not-so-good dad to really cool friend. Zac Efron (Hairspray, the High School Musical movies) and Matthew Perry (Friends) aer 17 Again and fabulously funny as the young and older Mike in agood-time time-warp comedy that proves the best year of your life is the one you're living right now.

Before you write off 17 Again as a tween flick not worth your time, you might want to give it a chance. I found it to be a charming, if a little syrupy, family film with a lot of heart and more than a few laughs.

Click the Rawr! for the complete review.

17 Again surprised me. I wasn't expecting anything much from the film but I really found myself enjoying it. It's funny which I was worried it wouldn't be. I was sure the filmmakers would dumb it down for the tweeners who would flock to the theaters to see it. Sure, there is some of that, but there are plenty of laughs for the older folks too.

Most of this comes from the hilarious Thomas Lennon who throws himself wholly into the nerdy best friend of Perry/Efron's character. His scenes wooing the school principal are outright hysterical.

The rest of the cast is great as well. All giving admirable, albeit safe, performances. Its not really a movie to take risks during so you aren't going to find any amazing performances here. We don't get enough Matthew Perry for my tastes but when he is on screen he is as charming as ever.

Zac Efron though proves he has the chops to carry a film that doesn't have Disney or Musical anywhere in the title. He has a great screen presence whether it's the comedy or even pulling some tears for the more dramatic moments of the film. I really think he has staying power if he plays his cards right.

The film looks great on Blu-ray. The picture is crystal clear with vibrant color and sharp images. The sound is just as perfect. The disc is full of special features including plenty of Zac for those tweeners (and not so tweeners) who are interested.

Fans of older films like 18 Again, Like Father, Like Son, or Vice Versa will appreciate the throwback to those types of films. Anyone who enjoys a good fun movie will get a kick out of 17 Again. There's nothing groundbreaking here but it is a great vehicle for an upcoming star and a provides a fun time to be had by all.

17 Again is available on DVD and Blu-ray now.

RAWR(for more)

BluRay Review: High School Musical

The complete High School Musical phenom is now available on BluRay and we have reviews of all three films. I'm going to do this a little bit differently than usual. I want to discuss the series as a whole and then I'll break down the three BluRays individually.

By now you surely know what High School Musical is. The Disney Channel original movie exploded and made instant stars out of its young cast, especially Zac Efron. It spawned 2 sequels, the latest shattering box office records

High School Musical is a tween sensation, a phenomena, and certainly a cash cow. But you know all this. What you nay not know is that the movies are actually pretty good.

Oh yes. I said it. They're sweet, entertaining, well acted, and all around fun to watch.

A series like this is going to be dependent almost entirely on its cast. It simply would not be successful if the cast isn't great. Fortunately for HSM, the cast is near superb. Even from the beginning they all embodied their characters and brought them to life with charm and believability. You really get a feeling for them and enjoy watching them grow throughout the three films.

For me the standouts are Zac Efron, Lucas Grabeel, and surprisingly Ashley Tisdale. She is great as the snobby superstar wannabe Sharpay. She is very funny and I kept thinking that if Sarah Michelle Gellar never returned to her Buffy roots that Ashley Tisdale might make a suitable replacement.

We're talking about musicals here so I'm sure you want to know how the music is? Well, it's pretty good. It's not great and outside of a few songs, not exactly memorable but it does fit with the movies tone. The songs in he first two movies seem much more authentic than in the third. High School Musical 3's songs seem a bit over produced and almost too soundtracky to me.

The movie is made for tweens, that much is for certain. That said, all three of them are enjoyable for all ages. They're sugary sweet for sure, but certainly better than I had thought they would be.

High School Musical: Remix
1080p High Definition/ 1.78:1
5.1 48 kHz 24 bit Uncompressed Audio
Bonus Features: Bringing It All Together: The Making of High School Musical, Learning The Moves, High School Reunion, The Hollywood Premiere, Disney Channel Dance Alongs, Sing Along with the movie, Music Videos,

High School Musical started it all with the story of a high school basketball star who meets a girl and learns he loves to sing. Together, they try out for the school musical and change their school forever.

The BluRay transfer looks great. The film has a slight grain to it but it really is hardly noticeable. The sound is crystal clear.

The disc is loaded with special features that take you behind the scenes, teach you the dance moves and songs. It's a great set for any fan of the movie.

High School Musical 2: Extended Edition
1080p High Definition/1.78:1
5.1 48 kHz 24 bit Uncompressed Audio
Bonus Features: Games and Activities, Sing Along Feature, High School Karaoke, Rehearsal Cam, Bloopers, and Music Videos

It's summer vacation for the gang and they all take summer jobs at a local resort owned by Sharpay's parents. Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) hatches a plan to get rid of Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens) so she can have Troy (Zac Efron) to herself and of course star in the resort talent show.

Everything about this disc is perfect. It looks and sounds fantastic. Especially, the outdoor scenes at the resort. Everything is crystal clear.

Like the original, this disc has a lot of fun special features including Karaoke if you are so inclined to sing the tunes from the film.

High School Musical 3: Senior Year Deluxe Extended Edition
1080p High Definition Flash/1.85:1
5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio (48 kHz 24 bit)
Bonus Features: Senior Awards, New Cast Profiles, BD Disney Live Network including BD-Live photo feature, Cast Goodbyes, Deleted Scenes, Bloopers, Sing-Along, 3-disc set includes a DVD copy of the film, and a Digital Copy for use on portable media players, as well as the BluRay disc.

The kids have entered Senior Year in the third entry of the series and on top of picking colleges, prom, and graduation they'll find time to put on a final musical about their own lives.

This is the monster package. Disney pulled out the stops for Senior Year. The set is jammed with special features and the 3-disc set includes a digital copy as well as a DVD copy of the film.

High School Musical 3 made the jump from TV to the big screen and they took advantage of the format in grand fashion without losing the spirit of the franchise.

The picture looks incredibly pristine and the colors just explode of the screen. It has amazing clarity in both picture and in sound. They certainly pulled out all the stops. Everything seems to be kicked up a notch and it all comes together perfectly.

Everything you could want in a musical and in a High School Musical is here in this movie and on this BluRay set.


As a series, High School Musical is surprisingly entertaining. Sure it's geared towards teens and tweens but it is certainly an enjoyable watch for anyone who likes musicals or movies with a great cast of characters. Disney has gone all out with these releases and all three bluray discs are great and well worth picking up.

The movies are fun, touching, and funny. You'll be hard-pressed not to have a smile on your face while you watch.

High School Musical, High School Musical 2, and High School Musical 3: Senior Year are all available on BluRay now.

Get a glimpse at High School Musical with some behind the scenes clips and some scenes from the movie.

RAWR(for more)

17 Again Trailer!

17 Again is one of the first movies Zac Efron has done outside of the realm of Disney so a lot is riding on it. Is he bankable outside of tweens? Can he carry a movie on his own? I'd say yes at this point. The movie looks funny. I liked Vice Versa and 18 Again and Freaky Friday so...

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High School Musical 3: Senior Year Trailer

I haven't seen any of these movies so I can't really say if this is going to be any good. I will say it does seem like it might be entertaining.

HSM3 hits theaters this fall.

RAWR(for more)